Hong Kong - Disney

[calmac]

We are spending a few days in Hong Kong at the end of a land tour of China and are considering visiting the Disney park there. Has anyone been? Was it worthwhile? Was it easy to get to?

 

We have been to Disneyland Paris (3 times but all before the latest park was added there), Disneyworld and Disneyland. DS will be almost 12 when we're in Hong Kong.

 

Thanks

[CruiseKidz]

Yes I took my 2 kids 5 &7 at the time in oct 2005, 2 weeks after it opened. It was very easy to get to, we took the bus from Kowloon very close to where our hotel was. I heard from a friend who went in April 2006 that there is a disney train that also goes. I booked my tickets online from home so when we got to the gate there os a line for pre booked tickets, put the credit card used foir the booking into a machine and the tickets were issued. I found it reasonably priced, It was a great day out for us we arrived at 10.00am when it opened and left at 9.00pm after the firework show. It is very clean and efficient and I believe it was continuing to be completed so ther might be more rides etc. We haven't been to any other Disney so I can't compare but my kids thought it was magical.We plan to return next April when we are back in Hong Kong. I suggest you have a look at the wegsite for updated info.

CruiseKidz

[Nancyquilts]

I think there is also a metro stop that is very close. I really wanted to go, but was having some health problems last time we were in Hong Kong. If you can walk easily, it should be great. Nancy

[CruiseKidz]

I believe the Disney train I referred to was the metro train.

CruiseKidz

[calmac]

Thanks for the encouraging posts. It sounds easy to get to and not too expensive so we probably will give it a try.

[CassCruise]

We were there last August late and it was one of the worst experiences - it was hot and CROWDED (we have been to Disneyland at Thanksgiving so know what crowds are like - that didn't have anything on HK Disneyland) - limited rides - eg we queued for 35 mins to get a fast pass for Autopia and when we got to the top of the queue (they were giving them out by hand) we were advised that it would be at least an hour wait upon our return - did we still want the fast pass???? - no was our polite reply - I personally couldn't recommend it - the only saving fact was we were going to Disneyland CA at the end of our trip otherwise we would have had two extremely disappointed children - in two days we went on 4 rides and saw the Lion King Show (which was excellent) - personally I would give it a wide berth!!! We stayed at the Hollywood Disneyland Hotel which the girls enjoyed but again give me the Interconti in Kowloon any day - the checkin crowds there also were unbelievable and very slow - been there done that but wouldn't recommend.....

 

my 2c

 

Jane

[Shiraz49]

G'day Jane,

 

Not really interested in Disneyland, it's a shame you had a less than pleasant experience.

 

Any views on must do/see from an Aussie perspective, cruising HK to Singapore on 15th Jan '08 and would welcome any feedback from a 'locals' perspective.

 

Thanks, Tom.

[CassCruise]

Hi Tom - I responded to another thread a few days back - and this is what I said:

 

"Last August we stayed at the Intercontinental Grand Stamford and it was absolutely superb - service, rooms, views (we stayed in a club room) we had chosen this hotel as it was one of the few that would allow 4 in a room and were really pleased we did.

 

We also did the Duk Ling ride - but you really need to book that as soon as you arrive in HK - they have a tourist information counter at the airport with very helpful staff.

 

A site I found invaluable was:

 

http://www.discoverhongkong.com/eng/index.jsp

 

they even had a lot of walking tours mapped out etc - goldmine of info - you will have a wonderful time."

 

This site honestly is great - not sure of your interests but also I would ring the HK Tourist Board - they sent me out a tonne of information which was great - as I said above the Duk Ling ride was a really pleasant intro - we walked down and caught the Star Ferry over and picked it up on HK Island - the fact it is free is a good bonus....

 

the thread if you haven't seen it is :

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=499720

 

we only had 3 nights there (and 2 at Disneyland) but loved pottering through the streets - we didn't do a huge amount as we had 2 dd's (6&9) and it was the start of our hols we did a tour of Hong Kong Island (thought it was easiest with the girls and think it was a good choice for us) and really enjoyed that but would have liked more time at Stanley Markets - some say they aren't nearly as good as they used to be but we hadn't noticed too much of a change and managed to get the things we needed at a good price!

 

Sing out it I can help with any further info!

 

Jane

 

haa just as well I cut and paste my response went into cyber space!!!

[Shiraz49]

Thanks Jane, info much appreciated.

 

I'm busily adding links to my bookmarks and will study them in a less hectic environment, or when I've got a cold beer or glass of red at hand.

 

Regards, Tom.

[kaisatsu]

We spent a week in Hong Kong a few years ago and included a day at Hong Kong Disney. I've been to Disney World multiple times in the past, but this was DH's first Disney experience.

 

The park was very easy to get to, and the Disney metro line was actually one of the more unique parts of the park. The entire train is designed in a Mickey Mouse theme, and it makes a great start to the day.

 

The park was small, but entertaining. However, I was a little disappointed that there wasn't more of an Asian twist to it. Apparently it used to be more Asian, but since the target market is mostly Asians, they wanted to see "America" instead of a Disney-fied version of home (understandable), and the park is now very vanilla Disney. The few Asian themes we still saw were: 1) The food caters to local palates, so don't expect typical theme park fare. 2) At one point we did see Chip & Dale character actors wearing straw hats and Asian clothing. 3) After a long search, we managed to find one shirt that had the Mickey Mouse logo drawn by the tail of a dragon. It was a very cool souvenir, and I wish they sold a few more things with this logo, since it's fantastic for us out-of-continent visitors!

 

In general, if you're a Disney fan and want to hit all the wolrd parks, by all means go! If you just want to take the kids to an amusement park during the trip, there's also some kind of ocean-themed park on the south side of Hong Kong island. However, don't be expecting an amazing or extremely unique Disney experience. Personally, with only a few days in Hong Kong, I'd try to visit some of the other Hong Kong sights like the outlying islands instead, since the Disney experience here isn't much different than what you'd find anywhere else.